Whilst the results were not good this week, the matches threw up two heroes in the form of Richard Chapman and Bryn Jones, both of whom played on after suffering an injury during the match. This dogged spirit actually enabled Richard (with Andy) to gain the only points of the weekend for Writhlington.

Writhlington proudly fielded their first-ever over 60s team (in an over 45s league!), comprising of Stan Janiak, Terry Gillman, Richard Chapman and Andy Jeffery. They faced the whippersnappers Mike, Mark, David and Mike, all Summer League Division Four and Five players, and two of whom are County Vet players for the over-50s and over-55s.

Richard and Andy took on Mike and Mark, and were very pleased to squeak the first set 6-4. The second set was going the same way, and we were 5-3 up – Richard had to turn to get a deep crosscourt, tripped and took a heavy fall, grazing his elbow, chin and a nasty deep cut on his lip (no teeth broken, thankfully). He was badly shaken, and made full use of the copious tissues offered by Clevedon to mop up the blood. After a few minutes, he bravely carried on, and whilst we had a couple of match points, we just could not convert them, with Richard and Mike having feature-length crosscourt rallies that I just could not get in to volley away. They won that set 7-5 and then won the champ tiebreak 10-6 (it was 8.30 p.m. by now!) for a really unfortunate loss for us.

Stan and Terry were having a great battle on the other court – they cruised the first set 6-0, but then Mike and David worked out how to play both the conditions and the Writhlington pair, and went on to win 6-2, 6-2. This was a tremendous effort by Stan and Terry, who were pairing up for the first time, and facing opposition well-above the level they are used to.

So whilst we were 4-0 down at half time, we should have been 2-2, and could quite easily have been 4-0 up!

Richard was still bleeding, but bravely agreed to play the second rubber, and we were heading for a disastrous loss at 5-1 down, when suddenly we got our act together. We just kept on winning game after game, with Richard not only bleeding but also limping from cramp! We won 7-5, 6-2 against opposition who, on paper were better than us, and this was a fitting reward for the huge heroics from Richard!

Stan and Terry put up a good fight against Mike and Mark, with long rallies and fast movement around the court that belied their years of experience, but eventually went down 6-0, 6-2. I have to say that they would make a very powerful pairing in the Summer League, if only they could be persuaded to play on Friday nights!

The whole match was played in very good spirits, with fair play from everyone, and very enjoyable, although Richard probably suffered hugely the morning after!

Callum Nowell and Louise Derrick played as the ‘Writhlington A’ pairing against the DL pairing of Matt Knight and Bridget Carr. A promising start in the first rubber fell away to a 6-2, 6-0 loss with the DL pairing. The indoor carpet courts were a definite home advantage for DL, apart from giving Callum a soft landing for his customary tumbles! Matt maximising the full-spin effects on the carpet, kicking a serve up into Callum’s face. Bridget in her own right was a threat on court, with accurate ground-strokes and volleys. Louise played some aggressive tennis with some fierce smash volleys at the net.

Bryn Jones and Pauline Medhurst took on the loud character of Adam Butcher and his partner Linda Rockcliffe. Adam again was another DL player whose serve was very much tailored to the carpet. His kick-serve on the forehand side going completely out of the reach of Pauline. Despite this, Bryn and Pauline had an excellent start, with chances to go 3-4 up in the first set. Sadly an injury to Bryn at this point restricted his movement around the court, and the rubber was lost 6-3, 6-2.

Although a loss, the Writhlington pair played well. Pauline was, as described by the opposition, an absolute wall at the net, pulling off some amazing volleys and one incredible drop-volley from a belted forehand down the line from Adam.

Second round was more of the same. Callum and Louise had a fun time dealing with Adam’s kick-serve, with Louise spending quite a lot of time on the next court chasing down the wide serves. It is not a proper league match unless Callum spills blood, and this he did with several more barrel roles and carpet burns. Their second rubber lost 6-4, 6-2. Bryn and Pauline won the bragging rights over Callum and Louise by taking more games off the DL top pairing and more games overall. Their second rubber lost 6-2, 6-2.

Enjoyable sociable drinks afterwards capped off a good evening of tennis. Although the result was a 10-0 loss for Writhlington, both pairings actually played some good tennis and enjoyed themselves.

Andy Jeffery